Tangled Up
by Quackerdrill
Summary: An account of a Tangela and how it affects many people's lives... whether they need it or not. Interested? Apparently not. R&R... someone...
1. Alone

_**Tangled Up**_

_An Unusual Fic by Quackerdrill!_

I. Alone

Kay was fed up with it. Her life was an endless spiral that could only lead to worse consequences than she already had. College was not the party she had expected from television and music, but instead was a cruel merry-go-round of torture. Every exam, every insane professor had become grating on her nerves, and without a safe haven to go "home" to, there was no break.

As she strolled down the stoic halls of Celadon University, anxiously pulling on her white blouse (a peculiar habit gained from her boyfriend), her mind drifted off past the cobblestone of the school and landed in a world of dreams. She longed to fly to a place where there was a way for her to raise her team of Grass Pokemon as well as continue her studies as to earn the impressive title of Pokemon Professor. She found it highly ironic that the classes required prohibited her from taking time to train.

With an atmosphere like this, it was no wonder that her mind fled. The corridors were dark and muddy-looking, filled with carvings of Legendaries adorning the grand passageways and sides of the buildings. Walking these paths was always an activity for Kay that exercised her mind; she supposed that this was put there by the planners for this sole purpose. A subject that often entered her head at these moments was her odd relationship with that Ben.

He had spent his life in what Kay referred to as "a constant incoherent trance". Working at the Game Corner in Celadon as a distributor of prizes was enough to gain needed money, but was a magnet for criminal activity. In one week alone, the corner was held up by three crooks; what Ben assured Kay was a world record. As this suggests, he did not take the danger at his work seriously. Kay simply ignored his plight, to the point of not talking to him for months. Ben however returned the compliment by annoying her with text messages during lectures. What was once an honorable affair became a nightmare. Kay was never sure whether or not they were still a couple, but by the definition of the word in the New Kanto Dictionary, the answer was a solid "no".

She had last approached the dining hall, which was perched on top of a hill far from her dormitory hall. Kay found it annoying to have to make this hike for every meal, but it is was worth it for the crisp Bayleef leaves and Tropius fruit that awaited her. The entrance was similarly designed to that of the rest of the university, with a breathtaking mural of a Charizard using Fire Blast above the glass door. Painstakingly designed and perfectly placed, Kay often gazed at this beauty for a good five minutes before she entered the hall. The result was no different this time. Old habits do die hard.

When she finally released her eyes from the portrait, she entered the hall. Several students were sitting in the booths quietly picking away at their meals. This, even at the current time of ten in the morning, was a common sight. After she had taken her piping hot slice of pizza and grabbed a small carton of Miltank milk, Kay sat a nearby brown table and placed her purse and meal tray on top. A quick grace and several jean adjustments later, she picked up her pizza and held it to her mouth. But she did this with care. She never knew if… it would arrive again.

It was a Tangela, short and sprightly with a mess of dark blue… hair that not only obscured its face, but its entire body save for a pair of red feet. It hopped into the dining hall a week before and drove most of the students out from pure shock. Kay wasn't fazed, however, having been a Grass Pokemon trainer for most of her life. So as the others fled, she remained, beckoning the Pokemon with a kind face and waving hand. It apparently did not find this appealing and hopped out the door without a cause. No explanation, no cause… exactly what Kay wished her life could be about.

After her room surveillance had ended, she bit into her slice and took a sip of cold milk. As the arrival of this strange creature was her main reason of coming to the hall, she found herself quickly bored; glancing at her notebook in her purse cured this ailment. Kay grabbed the book and set it flat in front of her, turning the page to a mess of notes that most likely could only be deciphered by her. On the top it read "Pokemon Natures and Abilities", which was part of her Advanced Pokemon Mastership course. This was one of the many requirements for professorship, and Kay was finding it a little hard to understand.

It didn't seem to help much that her notes were covered with doodles of food items, nor did it help that the last page of these notes had been drenched with water after a recent storm got the best of her book bag. But nonetheless, she read over her writing multiple times to try to stuff it in her head that the Lonely nature made friendship more difficult. When her eyes reached the end of her seventh read through, Kay heard a sudden shriek from across the room.

A female student donned in red hooded sweatshirt was cowering on the top of her table, with a familiar sight below. The Tangela had appeared once again. Quickly placing her empty tray in the wash pile on her way, Kay dashed over towards the Pokemon in hopes to catch a clear view.

"You!" the woman shouted at her, "Do something about this… is it a Pokemon?"

Kay rolled her eyes and ignored her question. _Obviously, Tangela is not the most popular Pokemon around here, _she thought. After the woman had finally given up all hope and all trust in Kay, she ran out the building along with the rest of the diners. Kay was left, approaching the creature with the same loving expression.

"Tangela… that's it, stay right there…" The Pokemon was becoming a little timid as it remained in place, watching her with its beady white eyes that shone from a stark blackness. Kay took care as to not scare it, but did not act completely powerless as to bring out trust in the creature. She was finally directly in front of it, and was taking advantage of its sudden calmness by taking it in completely.

There was a combination of feelings in its eyes, one of assuredness and readiness, the other of… loneliness. There was a tiny emerald bow on the top of its locks, perched ever so slightly that it almost appeared to be applied with invisible tape.

"Are you…okay?" Kay softly spoke. The Tangela grunted lowly and looked down. "I'll take that as a yes... It must be difficult being a Tangela, huh? You probably don't get the respect you deserve. Sure, people will paint murals of Charizard, and they'll fly on their Pidgeotto, but will anyone take time with a Tangela? No."

The creature's face softened and it carefully raised its head to look at Kay's. As she looked back into its eyes again, it came to her. The Lonely nature… it made sense. Suddenly, Professor Grant's lecture made perfect sense. Her indecipherable notes were readable. Her life became akin to a parachute floating down to earth. She was at peace.

Then, with a slight smirk out of its blackness the Tangela turned around, vine-like locks swirling, and bounced out of the room. Kay stood back up, adjusted her jeans once again, and watched the Pokemon gallop out the glass door. She never saw the creature again.

The next few months proved to be much more tolerable than the prior weeks or even years at Celadon University. Her professor's lectures were as accessible as an easy crossword puzzle and she studied a little less every cold Kanto night. She wrote her notes with a new passion for learning and exams were taken with flying colors. Kay had difficulty recalling whether this was the result of her encounter with Tangela, or the result of another event…

He had done it. Ben had sent Kay an e-mail addressing his departure from his job at the Game Corner and explaining why they could not be together anymore. He had been offered a job at the Corner in Goldenrod, Johto and he couldn't refuse the monetary increase. When she read this on the screen of her laptop one foggy morning, Kay felt a sharp pain in her heart grab hold of her unexpectedly. She couldn't tell if she should go with gut instinct and say that this was a welcome change, or go with her heart and say otherwise.

Now, Kay was alone. She had excellent marks in her courses, and was the apple of Professor Grant's eye… but she still had no family to call or boyfriend to contact. What was a feeling of sorrow from uncontrollable events had evolved into a feeling of desire for more than just academic success. She remembered that Tangela's happy, free face… and longed for it, once again.


	2. Silence

II. Silence

Jack read the name on his desk plaque repeatedly, skimming over the golden shimmer and black lettering. Under his name was a sentence that almost gave him an eye twitch when he read it: "President of Advertising". This was the title he had had for five years with the Devon Corporation, a title he had wanted to throw off and stomp on with his uncomfortable work shoes. It was the word equivalent to a ball and chain, keeping him from branching off to other, more ambitious work. But the stubborn mule in the next office wouldn't give him the saw to break his ties to the department.

The head of Devon Corporation was a hardened businessman who saw in only the direction that the company faced. His employees were his underlings, by every meaning of the word. When they called for him with problems or questions, he gave them a pre-written e-mail that read, simply: "I will get back to you on that as soon as I can". The perfect example of arrogance.

His reputation did not stop Jack from demanding his freedom when he wished to, though he quickly found that it was like a scratch on a diamond. Presents, bribes, and even threats did not bode well either and only put him higher on the boss's list. It seemed to Jack that he was stuck in a maze without an exit. To make it worse, there was his wife.

Margaret had been wed to Jack for many years longer than his devotion to Devon, but her resentment lasted much longer than that in his mind. She believed that, even with his dead end title, the company worked him too hard and he spent very little time at home with her. Margaret's mind was prone to worry and common migraines, so Jack became very guilty whenever she spoke of the company's puppet-like control of him. If she only knew how right she was.

Jack reclined in his chair while the symphony of creaks echoed from its base. The day had been just as long as they all were, and full of lengthy periods of time where he had virtually nothing to do. He spun the chair around and watched the drab white walls become a swirling mass. This only reminded him of his lunch revisiting him, so Jack stopped and sat upright. Above his usual focal point of his desk's nameplate was a window, currently closed and covered with blinds, to the right of the door. How he wished that he had the ability to open it and breathe in the sweet scent of fresh air paired with the Sweet Scent of local Hoenn-native Roselia… But the tyrant next door required that all windows be closed to save money with their air conditioning. Just one of the many reasons the Boss's leadership did not make sense.

Lunatics aside, the actual job Jack was forced to do was more of a waste of time than something beneficial to Devon. As President of Advertising, he oversaw all the different pitches and ideas that were thrown at him by the others in his department. He was able to give the final yes or no, but found this to be extremely repetitive instead of interesting. Most pitches were old, uninspired, or were aimed at the completely wrong audience. As meetings only came about once a week, Jack found himself with a lot of downtime. He just did not feel like he was doing anything significant or worthwhile, and that had to change.

When the hands on his watch finally hit five o' clock, Jack left his chair and exited his office only to find an unwelcome sight approach him at an alarming speed.

"Jack! Wait, before you go, I wanna chat! So, how's the family…?"

Standing in front of him with a precariously leaned Styrofoam coffee cup was a woman that was five feet of pure caffeine. Her hands jittered and her face moved aimlessly around and had yet to settle on one thing in the bleak hall.

"Um, I don't really have time to talk, Shelly," said Jack as he readied to turn around and continue the walk to the elevator, "maybe…tomorrow."

Shelly quickly grabbed hold of Jack's stiff shirt collar and kept him from moving any farther. He sighed and turned around, strangely attentive.

"No, I'm not gonna let you just walk away, no, no... You're gonna talk! So? Family? Tell me every little detail or-" Shelly quickly found herself interrupted by a billowing cloud of dark smoke. As she coughed she could see Jack dashing down the hall, a round shadow behind him.

"Nice work, Koffing, that was the closest one this week," Jack said as he entered the elevator with a floating purple Pokemon by his side. The creature rubbed a pair of its odd protrusions that covered its body on him gleefully. Jack, slightly disgusted, returned it to its Pokeball with a brilliant flash. As the elevator door shut he heard the fire alarm sound loudly paired with the pouring of the automatic sprinkler system. Although chaotic, the scene was quite enjoyable for him.

When he had arrived at the bottom floor, the newly built parking garage, he strode to his vehicle in much improved spirits than earlier that day. _Shelly deserved what was coming to her, _Jack thought as he surveyed the lot for his car, _always annoying everybody… _But in his thought, he had ignored what was in his path. As if karma was getting the best of him, his foot caught on a moving object below him and sent Jack falling hard on his side. He looked to both sides and saw to his right the top of a small creature who was bouncing down the aisles of the parking lot. Its blue vines that covered it glistened in the dim lighting of the structure. Jack, unable to move at the moment, just stared at it.

Jack had determined it to be a Tangela, but did not understand fully what it was; he had had a very short Pokemon training period, so was a little unclear on what was a Pokemon and what was not. Nonetheless, the creatures were everywhere and a person couldn't go by a billboard these days and see one of them advertising some product. In fact, Tangela was remotely familiar to him because of a recent campaign he headed for Devon's Scopes starred a Tangela that was given a voice so it could say, "See the unseen with Devon Scopes!". It didn't sell many of them.

This internal rage from loss of sales led him to at last finding his feet and rising off the pavement. Jack found that the Tangela had stopped and readied for his attack, but once he saw the little green bow that rested on its head he halted. He remembered that the boss's favorite ad campaign was that one…

Now with a just reason to catch the Pokemon, Jack crept closer towards the Tangela. His shoes, a bit scuffed up from his fall, were almost silent as he walked nearer and nearer. Other cars coming in were a blip on his mind's radar at the moment as he thought through his plan. If he gave the creature to the boss as a present it might be enough to tide him over for a possible- _No, no, he won't fall for it, _Jack thought, _he hasn't fallen for anything before. _But the possibility was so faint that… he went for it.

Jack reached for a Pokeball from under his suit jacket and gazed at the sharp glare it had from the lighting. With a quick throw it revealed, once again, his Koffing with a plume of purple gas. The Tangela, for some strange reason had yet to move a single vine.

"Okay, Koffing, it seems… distracted?" Jack questioned as he began to address his Pokemon in battle. "Whatever… Use Tackle, I suppose…"

The creature floated back a few inches and then thrust his body forward towards the Tangela with impressive force. Its girth whacked the Pokemon fully… but Tangela was still unmoved. Jack gave it a confused look and then returned his Koffing in a blaze of red light. Placing his Pokeball back on his belt strap, he thought. _So, if you want to be stubborn…_

Jack then grasped another Pokeball from his belt, this one lighter than the first. He took a step back and hurled the sphere at the Tangela, enveloping it inside, the white light lighting up the dim structure. After a few shakes from the ball, it froze in place. Jack went over and grabbed it, dreaming of the freedom it may bring.

The next Monday was the day that Jack would present his newly caught Pokemon to his boss, in hopes of a favorable outcome. But favorable was a relative term.

"A Tangela?" the man behind the desk asked in a harsh tone. "You know I've never fallen for any of your schemes to rise to the top before… you are quite the persistent one." Jack, sitting comfortably in the boss's office, rolled the Pokeball across the desk to the rather stern-looking man. He reached out and took the ball and released it, the Tangela quickly seizing the moment by doing a strange dance in front of him. He stared at it. Stared at it probably enough to singe the ribbon right off of its head. After his brief staring contest, he looked up at Jack.

"You do know that…" Jack braced for the worst as his boss's mouth opened. "Tangela is my absolute favorite Pokemon?" Jack nodded as the creature ended his dance and collapsed on his back. "You are quite the brave one to even come in here, Jack… the average person would have been stopped about a year ago. But… I thank you. This Tangela will be a wonderful addition to my daughter's Pokemon collection."

Jack cringed.

"Now go, out, before lunch break is over!"

Jack ambled down the hall of the building, stopping every now and then to lean on the wall. At first, the encounter was a good thing, him finally getting on the boss's good side. But, in the lines of the original plan, it was utter failure. He was still stuck at the starting line without any gunshot to tell him to advance. He could only wonder about the consequences he would receive form his wife… Time could only answer. That, and the cold silence that seeped into his life after that cruel day.


	3. Responsibility

III. Responsibility

She stood over the oven, allowing the oddly refreshing steam to caress her face. She watched the leeks lying inside the pot as the boiling water bubbled heavily beside that would eventually transform it into a dish of wonderful consistency. It was to be paired with the finest of sauces, a vinegary red wine concoction, and to be topped upon a display of bowtie pasta graciously covered with the aforementioned sauce. Megan backed away and looked dreamily at the boiling stems, seeing into their tasty future.

Megan had worked in this small resturaunt in the bustling metropolis of Goldenrod City for a good five years, and had believed that her cooking was excellent. But, if one was to judge this upon the average number of diners and the multitude of complaints given to waiters over this period of time, they would have to beg to differ. Her unique, worldly style did not strike any chord with the people of the city, who apparently saw trying new, adventurous foods as a risk not worth taking. No direct complaints were made to Megan, however, so her lack of culinary success was completely unknown to her. So she kept on making her dishes and kept reveling in what she thought to be perfection on a plate. Irony, in the best sense of the term.

As the clock behind her released a small wooden Pidgey along with five chimes, Megan finished her plate at last, and with a dash of parmesan cheese as a quick send off, she placed it on the table for the "to be served" plates.

"Another day, another painful day, eh Meg?" asked a tall man behind her as she grabbed her subtle black purse. She stood up and looked at him.

"I don't quite know about painful, but we'll see at the conference tonight."

The man took off his nametag and placed it inside his pocket as he followed Megan as she started towards the door. "Tonight? I must have dozed off this morning reading the newspaper. Um, sure, I suppose I'll go. Want a ride?"

Megan opened the door and leaned on it to keep it open. Her oaken brown eyes closed slowly as she directed them downward, gazing at the hardwood flooring that nearly matched the same hue. "Sure… eight. I'll be out front," she said with a bright smile that shone through the red hair that obscured it. "Just remember a notebook, Sean- I'm sure that there will be something interesting about the convention besides a bunch a losers talking about… well, not much."

He took his hand and held the door from under Megan's own weight, as to return her favor. She looked up and laughed, then quickly darted out the door with her purse's black shimmer reflecting the street lights.

_Ignorant, _Sean thought as Megan shut her car door and pulled out of the parking lot, _but yet so beautifully cognizant…_

The night's unique rhythm of chirps and squawks filled the night with mournful echoes. Out in the middle of a tree-lined meadow of long grasses interrupted by grey lawn chairs was a quaint stage. It was backed by an aluminum half-dome and appeared old and decrepit. The stage had been used for many events before for many years… and had the rusted edges to prove it. The lawn chairs were slowly being filled with people who came from the parking lot a few minutes away, with the front seats being claimed much faster than the others. Everyone who sat down had a notebook in their arms and a pencil either in their hair or in their pocket; an awfully wise-looking crowd, but each bearing a timid expression and a nervous aura that counteracted the pride brought by supposed knowledge. Grass-type Pokemon trainers were extremely easy to spot.

As Megan shut the door to Sean's car (after the second attempt to do so from lack of enough force) and brought up her notebook to her arms, she recalled her previous experiences at the "Annual Grass Pokemon Convention". The event was usually very small and most often only included one highlight: A visit to the nearby National Park to witness several Chikorita evolve at long last into the impressive form of Bayleef. The splendor of watching such a momentous occasion was always a source of awe and inspiration. But according to this year's information booklet about the event, the same was not to happen this time.

"Got everything?" Sean said as he watched Megan stare out into nothing while fumbling with her notebook.

"I guess so. But what if-"

"-You forgot something? Don't worry about it. I'm sure you won't need… whatever it is." He shook his head and locked the car with a swift click of his keychain. "You worry too much. Someday you're going to come into work and deep-fry your own hand…"

Megan giggled. "Yeah, like you did last March? Hypocrite." She sneered sarcastically and started walking away from the vehicle.

"Oh yeah?" he called, "Well, I'll be sure to ask for Extra-Crispy instead of Original next time."

She continued… but smiled.

"Hello all you out there! Welcome, once again to the Annual Grass Pokemon Convention Kickoff!"

The stage was now adorned comparably well, with a podium and a pair of large speakers on either side. The woman behind the podium, bearing an entire outfit of green scented by Pokemon pins, leaned comfortably on the stand while she gazed at the people scattered across the lawn chairs. Realizing that the number of attendees was not exactly record-making, she sighed and bit her lip.

"Um, in case the… handful of you didn't know, the theme of this year's convention is 'Chomp-Tastic: Being Creative with Grass Pokemon-Accented Food'!"

As the "crowd" applauded, Megan finally made her way to a pair of empty chairs near the right aisle. She sat down, with Sean next to her, and smiled wide.

"Did you hear that?" she asked. Sean was currently dealing with a rebellious chair- it had been threatening to fold on him since he sat down. After a fast twist of his arm, an attempt to keep the chair straight, it flipped forward and he was left with his face in the grass. "Um, do you need help?" Megan muttered as the people sitting in front averted their gaze from her fallen friend.

"Nah, I'll… sit on the grass." He pushed the chair aside and sat cross legged on the ground. "It's probably good for my… something or other."

"What I was going to say was the theme is about food! I already use Grass Pokemon leaves and other stuff in my dishes; this will help make them better!"

Sean calmly rolled his eyes.

It had been hard enough to keep that one thing from her, but it became even more grating on his nerves as the night continued. Sean was used to that feeling of want, the feeling that pushed him so hard to tell her of the… lackluster results of her work, but there was enough contempt in his heart that he somehow was unable to do so.

Ever since he had come into that diner on that cold winter day after seeing the warmth and company it could bring amidst all the chill, he had known Megan. Her light smile, her laughter, and her sheer drive and spirit were enough for any pure-blood male to melt and dedicate himself to her… but Sean refrained. He saw the end result from afar; attachment meant honesty and for the two of them, honesty would cost a job. Eventually the desire for companionship wore away and was lost with the snowflakes. A watched pot never boils, they say, and the pot of Megan's ingredients of wistfulness had stares as long as the time it took to explain it…

"Now did you hear that? Sean, are you even paying attention?"

The sound of Megan's voice alerted him of his submission. "Attention? Yes, something about the nullification of Sleep Powder for seasoning… can we go now?" Sean was obviously feeling the pain of a late night.

She crossed her arms. "Now? The night is still young, mister." Megan adjusted her notebook on her lap. "Is there something bothering you?"

Sean fumbled while he leaned against his chair leg and nearly fell once again. _How come people always ask that when you are? _He thought. _So nice, yet I have to…No wait, she will eventually figure it out. But what if it all ends and the manager follows through? _His head was reeling as he swayed back and forth between opinions, and the at last the sword had broken through the barrier and won the fight for honesty.

"It's the Tangela," he stated. Megan, who was furiously scribbling down notes in her book, quickly looked up at him with strands of her hair's orange glimmer falling in front of her cherry-hued cheeks.

Her eyes squinted. "What? What are you talking about?"

"The Tangela vines… I think you should lay off of them for the time being."

Megan's expression was coarse. "Do they taste bad? Is it the consistency?"

"Just… don't use them for a while…" Sean's voice trailed off.

Megan the saw a light in Sean's eyes that she hadn't seen since the day he joined the kitchen. It was a small glint that appeared with the same luminosity as a star, yet with the same color as a flame… it was a sign, surely, but she would have to wait to find its meaning.

And wait was what she did. The days got colder and so did her expression as the days of the winter rolled on. The manager had done as promised and gave her the last free meal for a while. Jobless. Hungry. Yet what was not fulfilled on a superficial level was completed on the inside by the communication with Sean, although how little it was. Something constantly told her that this man was responsible for everything…

…Yet responsible for nothing.


End file.
